Emma Wiggs

Emma is a four times world champion in the women’s K1 200m KL2 class, most recently claiming gold in Duisburg at the 2016 World Championships. She is also the 2015 European silver medallist in the same event.

Having qualified the Paralympic quota place for GB at the 2015 World Championships, Emma won both races at the British Canoeing Paralympic selection trials to secure her place on ParalympicsGB for Rio, where para-canoe made its debut on the programme.

At Rio 2016, Emma produced a dominant performance in the women’s KL2 final, recording a personal best time of 53.288 to beat her rivals by 2.311 seconds.

Emma also represented Great Britain in the ParalympicsGB sitting volleyball team for the London 2012 Paralympic Games. After the home Games she embarked on a mission to find a sport that would give her a chance to be the best she could be and found canoeing was the answer.

Emma grew up in Watford and throughout her schooling was very active, excelling at hockey. When she was 18, she went on a gap year to Australia and contracted a virus that initially paralysed her and left her with irreparable damage to the nerves in her legs. Despite this life changing event Emma was determined to pursue her chosen career as a PE teacher; studying Sports Science and gaining a PGCE in secondary PE, she started work in West Sussex in 2004.